That’s the way the lame-duck session of the winter of 1864 was portrayed in the film, “Lincoln,” the tale about President Abraham Lincoln’s winning of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution barring slavery.

Fitting that the film should play for the lame-duck session of the winter of 2012, as lawmakers struggle to avert a “fiscal cliff.”

Steven Spielberg, director of the film, and Daniel Day-Lewis, who delivered a powerful portrayal of Lincoln in it, plan to attend a screening for members of Congress at 5 pm EST tomorrow.